Ahsan Habib

Bangladesh ranks among the countries with the highest income disparities globally, but there is another problem way worse than that: wealth inequality, which means a minuscule portion of the population owns a disproportionate amount of wealth compared to the majority.

The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has backtracked on its decision to refrain from injecting fresh funds into crisis-hit banks in its efforts to curb persistent inflation.

Ailing lender Islami Bank recently announced that it planned to raise a total of Tk 20,000 crore using two methods: Tk 10,000 crore would be realised by selling the stake that S Alam Group holds in the lender and the rest would be made up through the issuance of new shares.

Aminur Rahman was excited after hearing that the company he had invested in had recently been upgraded to A-category. Anticipating price gains, he rushed to his brokerage house, only to be met with disappointing news: he was unable to trade.

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has sought detailed information, including portfolio statements, of 117 beneficiary owner (BO) accounts with which the owners of Beximco Ltd are allegedly involved.

When an interim government was sworn into office following the ouster of the Awami League regime just 100 days ago, there was an air of expectation that the Prof Muhammad Yunus-led administration would take steps to salvage a scam-ridden financial sector and rescue an ailing economy.

Designated as a basket case after gaining independence in 1971, Bangladesh silenced even its harshest critics as it transformed into one of the world’s foremost development cases.

Bad news for Beximco Sukuk investors: their gain from the Shariah-compliant bond-like instrument next month is set to drop to 9 percent -- below the 12.3 percent yield from five year-tenure treasury bonds and the 10.87 percent inflation rate in October.

IFIC Bank has served a legal notice to Shakib Al Hasan Agro Farm Ltd, an entity owned by its namesake and the former captain of the Bangladesh national cricket team, after a cheque issued by the company bounced.

The Awami League government favoured the super-rich who controlled capital and laundered the funds aboard, dampening the country’s economy.

The share prices of Sea Pearl Beach Resort and Spa Limited soared from Tk 60 to Tk 320 on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) within just one year after frenzied speculation in 2023 that a foreign investor would buy a significant stake in the company.

Stocks in Bangladesh plummeted to a four-year low yesterday, just a day after the stock market regulator formed an inquiry committee to investigate the reasons behind the market’s sharp decline.

The stock market index has been on a downward trajectory for the past two months, as a brief surge following the August political changeover quickly fizzled out.

Unlike other companies in Bangladesh, banks and non-bank financial institutions have not been fully adhering to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), so the real scenario of the financial sector is hidden from public view.

Alleged discrepancies in financial records and subsequent board restructuring and non-payment of dividends to investors over the past five years have done little to dissuade Uttara Finance and Investments from going for lavish expenditures this year.

After a long time, foreign investors are showing renewed interest in buying shares of listed companies in Bangladesh as they hope good governance will return to the local stock market following the recent political changeover.

Bangladesh could increase its output in the manufacturing, service and farming sectors by up to 29 percent simply by bringing more women into the workforce, according to the World Bank.

The Washington-based multilateral lender’s Business Ready (B-Ready) report, which was released yesterday, also places Bangladesh in the fourth tier of five stages for public service delivery, indicating weaker performance in this area too

The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has alleged that manipulators were fuelling protests against the regulator to prevent it from taking a stand against corruption and reforming the stock market.

Bangladesh can join hands with Malaysia to develop a sector that caters to global semiconductor industries, which can play a vital role in increasing export earnings, said Shabbir A Khan, president of the Bangladesh-Malaysia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BMCCI).